ASIA LETTER: It is the middle of April and peak time in Beijing for that species known as the western tourist.
There was a time, only a short few years ago, when this self same species was virtually non-existent in this part of the world. But these days foreign visitors are thronging the streets of the Chinese capital.
In fact, tourism has become one of Beijing's biggest growth industries, and with the 2008 Olympics on the horizon, the authorities are determined to cash in.
The latest statistics show that 297,000 overseas tourists visited Beijing in the first two months of this year, a rise of 12.3 percent on 2001. In total last year, just under three million foreigners visited the capital, spending over $2 billion dollars.
The Irish are making their contribution to China's tourist boom, and the 50-strong Irish community in Beijing has mushroomed in recent weeks with friends and relatives descending. It is impossible to visit any of the sights or to go shopping down Silk Alley without hearing a Dublin, Cork, or west of Ireland accent.
In fact, there isn't a seat to be had at the Saturday evening "underground" Mass at the Canadian embassy these times thanks to the Irish imposters. There was a queue for Easter Sunday.
We have had our fair share of awe-struck visitors in the last fortnight - my mother, sister, brother-in-law, parents-in-law, aunt and uncle-in-law, and two cousins - and more are on their way.
They have all gone away full of praise for China and Beijing. Many are even threatening to come back again. We've asked them to leave it for a few weeks until we recover.
I always get a kick out of the visitors' first reaction to Beijing. All the e-mails and advance briefings are never enough to prepare them for the modern metropolis Beijing has become.
On the way from the new airport, to the centre of town, via a six-lane carriageway, there is surprise, sometimes even disappointment, that there are no sombre faced citizens wearing dark Mao suits to be seen.
What they encounter are happy, brightly-dressed people, spotless main streets, courteous hotel and restaurant staff, fine modern archictecture, and a road network which would be the envy of many a developed country, including Ireland.
Most visitors make the journey to the Great Wall, and will perhaps drop into the old home of the emperors, the Forbidden City, on the way back into town. A stroll around Tiananmen Square, the scene of the 1989 student massacres, and a visit to Mao's mausoleum are also a must.
At this time of year the Summer Palace on the north-western outskirts of the city, and a boating trip on the lake there, is recommended. But be warned . . . there may be traffic snarl-ups on the way and the dead fish in the polluted palace lake might put you off your lunch.
One of the big attractions about Beijing is the shopping and there are bargains galore. Silk Alley is the most popular market but a visit to the Hongqiao Pearl market, and a stroll across the road to the splendid Temple of Heaven after all your money is spent, is worth the effort. (Remember just pay a third or less of the asking price. Play tough.)
Taxis in Beijing are cheap and plentiful, if a little small and smelly. Always have the name of where you intend going written in Chinese, and keep the hotel business card on your person.
The foreign visitor to Beijing will be spoilt for choice when it comes to eating out. Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Korean, Tibetan, Western . . . it is all here at a fraction of the prices you pay at home.
All our visitors have been especially overwhelmed by the kindness shown to them by the Chinese people and agree the positives of China far outweigh the negatives.
One of the biggest problems is the language barrier but that is improving with taxi drivers, shop assistants, and restaurant workers all being encouraged by the city authorities to learned English in the run up to 2008. English is to become a compulsory subject on the junior middle school curriculum.
Both sides of my family had their own small difficulties these last few weeks, mainly language related. But they resulted in some funny moments.
One night we were in a popular Chinese restaurant and decided my mother had to try some snake. The waitress, struggling with English, nodded that she understood.
We were surprised to see that our "snake" was what looked for all the world a plate of pastries with a dark filling. But it tasted really good.
Only when the plate was cleared and my mother was patting herself on the back for being so adventurous did we realise that we had, in fact, ordered a "snack", and not "snake".
And the in-laws did not go untroubled either. They were parched after being put through their paces at the Great Wall by their enthusiastic guide, Mr Li. The fact they had climbed the Wall during one of Beijing's notorious sandstorms only increased their thirst. Their eyes lit up when Mr Li asked if they would like to visit the "beer" house.
They could hardly hide their disappointment when they ended up a few minutes later in a "bear" house. But don't let these small misunderstandings put you off visiting China.